slickcraft reseal,, well repower..... well reglass etc. etc.

November 10th, 2008, 12:10 AM

Hi, my name is mike, and I ve been reading here for sometime and have learned a lot of valuable info, and motivation to press on. My "project started out as a 73 slickcraft ss 235 hardtop. purchased for the intent of big lake fishing. I fell inn love with the lines of the boat and made a decision,so 1500.00 later i had her home. the 307 chev runs great but was overheatin above idle, i started the diagnosis and reasoned thet it was time to pull the impeller and repair the leaking pivot caps etc etc. well, the uppere gearcase needed som serious attention, as did the water pump. also the ball gears. whichmine being the earlyt style would require a 600.00 invest alone. all for an outdrive that is sensitive to operate and suffer from some poor engineering, that I would have little confidence in. So along comes a donor boat with a volvo penta v8 outdrive for the refit. after preparing the thransom refit i founa little rot here and there. From aft to bow! it is now a bere hull, minus the cabin, it was solid. I have been in the process of cutting my compononents lateley and am almoost done transom,stringers bulkheads etc. this is farther than I had anticipated going with this but i really like the boat so press on it will be. I would love to hear any critics or comments throughout the project if anyone is interested. Ill post some pics as i go

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Maxum,
Thanks, next is to start glassing in the components after sanding them and giving them a coat of resin. I am going to use epoxy resin as I feel it will be superior to the prevention af future decay of the wood components. I'm using 4 oz cloth over the roving and intend on 2 coats of epoxy on top for water proofing's sake. One of the most troublesome things for me has been the issue of foam and what to use and how to keep it from holding moisture (impossible) ,so my thought is to take some tips from some other members and puor my foam in place using a plastic sheet as a mold release and fashion a removable drainage grid to lay directly on the hull. I am also considering some sort of ventilation system beneath the deck and cabin/cockpit sole to vent to the gunnels. I think i'm headed in the right direction, any thoughts? oops's hull extension thread has provided much needed inspiration after the letdown discovering the extent of the wood decay.

'73 slickcraft ss 235

'92 starcraft 170 dc walleye

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I've been doing some thinking about under deck ventalation for a future project. Basically leaving an air space under the deck and have vents in the outside bow and outside transom area. This way the water could move freely through the bilge and air could circulate along with the water helping to keep the the foam dryer as it would be incased above the bilge opening. This would call for a double floor so the foam could still be used for flotation and leave the free flowing bilge with air flow below.

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nice looking boat! it is similar to my allmand 25', i like the hardtop, how much head room do you have? i am going to build one for mine to put rod holders on it, are you going to rig it for salmon? i see you live in mi, i live 15 miles west of Holland

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Maxum,
from my research on the issue of foam, my conclusion is that given a long enough exposure to water the foam will absorb and hold the water. I had a few chunks that were heavy as rocks when I removed them, I set them up to drain for a few weeks and thewon't give it up. Once it is waterlogged its done, particularly sealed under the deck. I also took a chunk of dry foam, gouged a hole in it and filled it with water. I let it set for about an hour and poured it out and the water seemed to bead right out. My thought is that you will NEVER be able to eliminate water below the deck, so instead of trying to fight it ,allow enough drainage and ventilation to move the water before it has a chance to absorb. And if it doesn't work, then well, i guess it should have!

'73 slickcraft ss 235

'92 starcraft 170 dc walleye

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rickics,
Hey, Nice to hear from someone in my neck of the woods, but isn't 15 mi. west of holland about 200 FOW? just kidding! In fact I bought her just down from you in saugatuck. Yes, i'll be rigging it for the big lake. When I'm standing at the helm a have to crouch a tad, I'm 6' and i think its about 5'10". I have thought about raising it a few inches but I am undecided as to how yet and still make it look good. (also without some major glassing work!) I'd like to see a pic of your Allmand.

'73 slickcraft ss 235

'92 starcraft 170 dc walleye

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jonesg,
thanks, Look around, there's more around than you think. the ss 235 was made for several years and seemed to be a popular model for slickcraft. As far as the fuel tank, it is amidship below deck, but has a teak grill above it. that just lays in place. it has a port and starboard vent to supply and remove air while underway, but it is open to the atmosphere otherwise, it's not sealed under the deck in foam like some. (of course it still can't be removed without cutting the deck!) Which i will be addressing soon, as I'm not sure about re-installing a 36 y.o. tank into the floor that I can't remove!

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Not much lately, Deer season has gotten in the way the last few weeks. My 2 boys are getting old enough to really like hunting so I've been taking them as much as I can. That and it decided to get COLD immediately here in sw Mi!! We usually dont see these steady cold temps till after christmas, but there ain't no warming trend in sight!! It was 14 F this morning! I don't think my temporary shelter/workshop is going to be very efficient at heating to working temp for my glass work,.... So I'm gonna take her top off and squeeeeeze her into the garage.

I received all of my resin, flotation foam and about 120 lbs. of fiberglass, so I'll be getting back to work pretty soon.
In the meantime I've been working on my layout of the deck, (tackle storage,seating etc) and have been searching for furniture to accomodate it.
I haven't been able to find exactly what I want, so I've sketched out a few Ideas and I think I'll end up building most of it. (I'm trying to maximize space).

All this from a simple clean-up, resealing and a little re-rigging!

'73 slickcraft ss 235

'92 starcraft 170 dc walleye

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Well I finally got back to work on my project. Due to the weather I decided to take her top off in order to fit it in the garage. here are pics of that undertaking. (the top and windshield are hanging in from the rafters of my temporary "garage "!). I started wetting out and bedding in stringers and bulkheads.

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Here are some more pics of the beginning of the bedding in and wetting out process.I'n order to get the resin to kick, I've covered the boat with a tarp and have a halogen worklight and an electric "milkhouse" heater that I run in the inside the boat when the work is finished for the night. Plus I am running my garage heater before and while I'm working. The resin seems to be kicking just right. I am using epoxy and one of the below pics is a bowl of "learning curve". I used some of the fast hardener and was mixing in my filler, add a little, mix a little, add a little, mix a little. Well I discovered the proper proportions of filler to add to the epoxy and by the time I did the bowl started to get a little warm. No problem....., I thought!, hopped in the boat with my trowel and a few tongue depressors and immediately I couldn't remove the tongue depressor I had stuck in the bowl!! The garage temp was about 50 F but I keep the resin in the house.I took the bowl outside and set it down and watched it sink into the snowbank!After that I got a much better feel for the resin and got to work. My next step will be to install the the remaining cockpit bulkhead and start on the transom, which is laminated from I piece of 3/4 ply and 2 pieces of 1/2 ply. I started wetting out the first 2 pieces tonight so that I can install them tomorrow.